Old Testament Lesson; Jeremiah 23:2-6
Gospel Lesson; Luke 23:35-43
Sermon Text; Colossians 1:13-20

Today I begin by asking a very simple question. It is the question, "Who is this King?"

Throughout history there have been different individuals who have been known as the king. If you are a race fan, there is someone who is known as ‘the king.’ His name was Richard Petty. From a singing or music standpoint in history, there is someone who is known as ‘the king.’ His name is Elvis Presley. From a religious or a spiritual standpoint there is only one King. And, it is our Savior, Jesus Christ.

And so today, we focus on Christ, our King. As the liturgical calendar was put together many years ago, those people who put it together, designated this very last Sunday of the church year as Christ the King Sunday. And so, with our prayers, scripture readings, and hymns we do just that. We focus on Christ the King.

Now it is not a hymn that we are going to sing together as a congregation, but is one that talks about Christ our King. The title of the hymn is:

All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name.

All hail the power of Jesus' name.

Let angel's prostrate fall.

Bring forth the royal diadem,

and crown Him Lord of all.

Bring forth the royal diadem,

and crown Him Lord of all.

Today, with our message, we do just that by looking at Christ our King.

Before the days in which our text was written, the Apostle Paul was on his third missionary journey. He was stationed in Ephesus. People were going out from Ephesus with the message of salvation that we are saved by Christ. There were also people coming to Ephesus. One such young man by the name of Epaphras came and he heard that Jesus was the Messiah. He heard that Jesus was the King. And so, he went back to his city, the city of Colosse. And there he shared with the people who Jesus was.

Jesus is our Savior.

Jesus is our King.

But, it was not too long after Epaphras started spreading that message that false teachers came into Colosse. Really, they began downgrading the person and the work of Christ. Epaphras needed some help. He went and sought out the Apostle Paul. It was not an easy journey that he made. The journey that he made is equivalent to going from Madison, Wisconsin to Naples, Florida. He went from Colosse to Rome, where Paul was in prison and in chains.

He shared with him how the message of salvation was being attacked. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote this letter to the church at Colosse. It is also known as the book of Colossians. In this book, the Apostle Paul holds forth the supremacy of Christ.

Before I read this scripture reading for today, I want you to keep in mind these few things. In these few short verses, the Apostle Paul packs in so many things about Christ the King. Here are just a few of them. The Apostle Paul says that Christ is our redeemer. He is our creator. He is our head. He is God. And, He is our reconciler. And so, with those things in mind, please hold before you our scripture reading for today, which we read in Colossians chapter 1.

"For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the Kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood shed on the cross."

This is God's Word. These are your words, Heavenly Father. Lead us in the way of truth. Your Word is truth.

Amen

I don't like being called a sinner. I know that you don't like being called a sinner, either. And yet, that simply is a reality. If it was left up to ourselves, we would need to justify ourselves or cover over our sin.

We make excuses for ourselves (that’s just the way I am)

We point at others (he hit me 1^st)

We compare ourselves (I’m better than so-in-so)

God asks for us to be perfect. And, we can't be perfect, as He asks us to be.

There is a payment that needs to be made for sin. In the Old Testament, God drove that into the minds of his people with animal sacrifices. Sacrifices needed to be made as payment for a person's sin.

Think of this illustration for just a moment. Suppose that there is a man who goes to a priest with a sheep to make payment for his sin. The priest sacrifices that sheep and finds out that the sheep has a diseased liver. That sheep would not be an acceptable sacrifice, because it has a blemish. So the man goes back to his flock and gets another sheep. He brings it to the priest, to be sacrificed. The priest sacrifices that sheep and again, the sheep has a diseased liver. The man goes back to his flock and gets another. He does the same thing and comes to the realization that all of the sheep of his flock have a diseased liver because of something that they ate, while they were out in the pasture.

There is only one sheep left to be offered, and that is his son's lamb. His son's lamb never ate in that pasture, but rather ate with the family at the table from the day it was born. So, the father takes his son's little lamb, and brings it to the priest as a sacrifice for his sin.

That illustration shows not only the seriousness of our sin, but it shows that a price had to be paid for our salvation. Jesus paid that price.

Christ the King is our Redeemer.

The word ‘redeem’ simply means ‘to buy back.’ Christ the King, as our Redeemer, bought us back from sin and bought us back from death.

Not only is Christ the King our Redeemer, He also is our Creator. Usually, in Confirmation Class, as we ascribe the work of the Trinity, we say that it is God the Father who is responsible for creation. But, it is also appropriate and proper for us to say that Jesus is our Creator, as the Apostle Paul says in our text for today. The Apostle John put it this way in his gospel, when he says, "In the beginning was the Word, (that is talking about Jesus), and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. In Him all things were made. Without Him, nothing was made that has been made. " And so, it is true for us to say that Christ, our King, is our Creator. Jesus continues to preserve us today.

Christ the King is our Creator.

But, not only does Christ the King rule over the whole world as our Creator, He also rules over the Church, as our Head. Christ the King is our head. Now, just as a body has a head, so also the Church has a head. And that head is Christ. A body cannot live without its head. In the head is the brain and in the head is where the nervous system gets its start. The Church cannot exist without Christ. Christ rules over the Church for our benefit. Today we say thanks be to God for Christ the King who is our head.

Christ the King is our head.

Remember, it was those false teachers in Colosse who were downgrading the person of Christ. On this Christ the King Sunday, the Apostle Paul reminds us of the supremacy of Christ by saying, "He is God." In our text for today the Apostle Paul says, "For God was pleased to have all His fullness to dwell in Him."

Christ the King is God.

Every time we confess our faith using the words of the Nicene Creed, we acknowledge that. "Jesus is God of God, light of light, very God of very God, begotten not made, being of one substance with the Father."

Paul reminds us in our text for today that Christ the King is also our reconciler. I have used this illustration before, but it is one that I love. When I was a young child there would be a letter that would come in the mail each month, from the bank. When that letter came, my mom would open it up, and she would sit down at the kitchen table, and she would reconcile her checkbook. She made sure that what the bank statement said was in keeping with what her register in her checkbook said, to the very penny, so that they would be in harmony with one another. You and I, because of our sin are enemies of God. And yet, Christ our King has reconciled us. Christ the King has reconciled us to God and He did it through His blood, shed on the cross. In Him we have the forgiveness of sins, so that now, as Children of God, we stand in a harmonious relationship with our Heavenly Father.

Christ the King rules over the world as our creator. Christ the King rules over the Church as our head. And Christ the King rules over Heaven as our redeemer and as our reconciler.

As one of your spiritual leaders, it is important for me to always lay before you the importance of our salvation. I was again reminded of this as a former member died a tragic death. It is a reminder for all of us that our life could be taken at any moment.

It is my encouragement once again dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, dear fellow redeemed, to study God's Word each and every day, to join together for corporate worship, each and every week, so we hear those important things that we need to hear – that we are sinners who have a Savior. Christ is our King. And we have peace with Him. We have the forgiveness of sins, through the shedding of His blood on the cross.

Thanks be to Christ, our King.

Amen.